The student will
demonstrate knowledge of the changing role of the United States from the
late nineteenth century through World War I by
a) explaining the reasons for and results of the Spanish American War.

What were the reasons for the Spanish
American War?

** Economic
interests and public opinion often influence U.S. involvement in
international affairs.

Reasons for the Spanish American War
 Protection of American business interests in Cuba

 American support of
Cuban rebels to gain independence from Spain

 Rising tensions as a result of the sinking of the U.S.S. Maine in Havana
Harbor

 Exaggerated news reports of events (Yellow Journalism)

What were the
results of the Spanish American War?

** The United
States emerged as a world power as a result of victory over Spain in the
Spanish American War.

 The United States emerged as a world power.

 Cuba gained independence from Spain.

 The United States gained possession of the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto
Rico.

Background and Detail
The content above is from the
curriculum resource guide. To put the facts above in context, I have added
the additional detail below.

The Spanish American War - April 25-August 12, 1898

The war between the U.S. and Spain, lasted only 4 months. Most
of the fighting occurred on Cuba and the Philippines on opposite
sides of the world.

In 1895 Cuban
nationalists began a revolt against the Spanish government. The U.S. was concerned about
protection of American business interests in Cuba. American
business owned huge tracts of land in Cuba to grow sugar, and the sugar
trade was very profitable for U.S. business.

Cubans had been unhappy with Spanish rule
for some time, and Americans were sympathetic. Spain's harsh
attempts to put down the Cuban revolt and cruel treatment of the Cubans
increased support in the U.S. for Cuba's struggle for independence.
President McKinley, however, had personally seen so much death and
destruction during the Civil War that he was hesitant to get involved.

Yellow Journalism

Newspapers, competing for sales, exaggerated
stories of the horrors of Cuban life under oppressive Spanish rule.
The Spanish had confined many Cubans to concentration camps. The
press called them "death camps." and wrote headlines like
Spanish Cannibalism, Inhuman Torture, Amazon Warriors Fight For
Rebels. Newspapers sent hundreds of reporters, artists, and
photographers to Cuba to report Spanish atrocities.

One photographer sent to cover the Cuban revolt sent back the
message, "There
is
no war. Request to be recalled." His boss sent back a cable,
"Please remain. You furnish the pictures, I'll furnish the
war." These newspaper stories of Spanish cruelty sold
newspapers and swayed public opinion in favor of intervention.

The name Yellow Journalism came from this
popular cartoon of the Yellow Kid, who wore a yellow gown gown while
he mocked upper-class customs.

The Battleship Maine
The battleship Maine was sent to Cuba to show
American concern over Spanish actions and support for the Cuban
rebels. The Maine had been in Havana Harbor three weeks when the
captain wrote the trouble in Cuba was almost over and the new
Spanish governor had the situation under control.

Then
one night the battleship blew up and sank, killing 266 men. The
American press immediately blamed the Spanish, though there was no
evidence that the the Spanish were responsible. In order to attract
readers they even faked pictures showing Spanish soldiers planting mines
around the ship. Hundreds of editorials demanded revenge. Soon a rallying
cry could be heard everywhere -- in the papers, on the streets, and in the
halls of Congress: "Remember the Maine! To ** with Spain." President
William McKinley was pressured by Congress into asking for a declaration
of war.

The U.S. Becomes a World Power
The war itself lasted only four months, from mid-April to mid-August
1898. There were 379 American combat deaths, but more than 5,000
servicemen died of disease.
What of the war's consequences? Most immediately it produced the nation's
first overseas empire
Begun over the cause of Cuban independence, the war marked the emergence
of the United States as a world power and the beginning of American
overseas imperialism. Most of the fighting occurred in the Spanish
possessions of Cuba and the Philippines on opposite sides of the world.
Representatives of Spain and the United States signed a peace treaty in
Paris on December 10, 1898 established the independence of Cuba, ceded
Puerto Rico and Guam to the United States, and allowed the victorious
power to purchase the Philippines Islands from Spain for $20 million.

USII.4b World War I

STANDARD USII.4b
The student will demonstrate knowledge of the changing role of the
United States from the late nineteenth century through World War I
by
b) explaining the reasons for the United States involvement in
World War I and its leadership role at the conclusion of the war.

What were the reasons for the United States becoming involved in
World War I?

Background (not in curriculum
guide)
Disagreements in Europe over territory and boundaries, among other
issues, came to a head with the assassination by a Serbian of the
Archduke Ferdinand of Austria on June 28, 1914. War broke out one
month later. Soon Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, Germany and the Ottoman
Empire were battling the Allied Powers of Britain, France, Russia,
Italy, Belgium, Serbia, Montenegro and Japan.
http://www.picturehistory.com/find/p/4351/mcms.htmlA German U-boat Torpedoes a Steamer In these photographs taken around 1916, an Allied
steamer is sunk by U-boat torpedoes. The first major incident
involving a ship carrying American citizens occurred on May 17, 1915
with the sinking of the British ocean liner "Lusitania." Though the
Germans agreed to halt submarine warfare after this incident, they
resumed the practice in early 1917. It was the terrifying, unbridled
attacks of the German U-boats or submarines that finally brought
America into World War I.

http://www.picturehistory.com"Lusitania Sunk by A Submarine, Probably 1260 Dead" This
headline from the front page of the May 8, 1915 edition of the "New
York Times"
http://www.picturehistory.comSoldiers Walking Through the Trenches The endless miles of trenches employed during World
War I were deep, and often fortified with mounded earth and barbed
wire fencing. This photograph shows two men carrying an injured
soldier.
World War I ended June 28, 1919 with the Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles imposed very harsh restrictions on Germany,
including limiting its army to 100,000 men. President Wilson, who
opposed the treaty. He prepared his own peace plan called the
"Fourteen Points," which included a provision for a
League of Nations to prevent future wars. German territories
among the Allied Nations. Many historians believe these terms
eventually led to World War II.
http://www.picturehistory.com/find/p/9315/mcms.htmlGerman Infantry on the BattlefieldGerman soldiers are shown advancing across a
battlefield during World War I.

There were disagreements about the
extent to which the United States should isolate itself from world
affairs.

Reasons for U.S. involvement in war

 Inability to remain neutral

 German submarine warfare sinking of Lusitania

 U.S. economic and political ties to Great Britain

http://www.picturehistory.com/In response to the government's
calls for enlistments, two million Americans went to France in
1917 and 1918. Their efforts, combined with those of the
French and the British, finally broke the German forces and
led to victory for the Allies

The United States involvement in World War I
ended a long tradition of avoiding involvement in European
conflicts and set the stage for the United States to emerge as
a global superpower later in the 20th century.